Forged Bonds
by Laura Gracelin
Summary: A story about the author's fan characters for the series Naruto and Naruto Shippuuden. Takes place 3 years before the start of the Naruto main story line.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One: Age 8**

A man stood over a woman's body with a cruel smile on his face. He enjoyed the feeling of killing her, the woman he had once loved. That little voice in his head had told him to kill her, that he would enjoy it, and so he did. He laughed now, what had started off as a dark and quiet chuckle slowly became uproarious hysteria. He looked around at all the blood, the broken glass, the upturned furniture. He laughed so much he started to cry.

Two small boys hid in the next room; huddled together, holding each other's hands. They were twins; only eight years old and they had just witnessed their mother's brutal murder at their father's hands. The younger twin, Reita, was crying and holding desperately to his brother, Arata. Reita couldn't believe what he had seen. Arata pulled them both into the next room, quickly, his mind quickly filling with panic and fear. He knew he had to protect his brother no matter what, now that their mother was gone.

An intense pain ripped through his chest; their mother was gone. She had died because of _him_. Overcome with fury, Arata rose, shaking off his brother's protests, and ran into the room where his father stood laughing. Taking a shard of broken glass from the floor Arata ran towards his father. He jumped onto the overturned couch and launched himself at the stranger who no longer acted like the father, nor the man, he once knew. The man turned, surprised that his son was attacking him, and barely had enough time to block the boy's attack. Arata managed to thrust the shard of glass into the arm his father had used to block the attack, piercing him through. Roaring in a mixture of pain and anger, he kicked the boy hard, sending him flying to the opposite wall, and watched as he slumped to the floor.

Arata picked up another shard of glass and ran to his father again. His fury and hatred compelled him to keep fighting until the man lay dead. Faking to the left, his father followed suit, but at the last moment Arata shifted towards the right; he stabbed the glass below the man's rib cage and pushed upwards.

The man gasped as blood spurted out of his mouth, evidence that his lung had been punctured. He dropped to the ground, holding his wound. Arata ran back to the room he had left his brother in; Reita was still frightened and crying. Arata grabbed his brother's arm and pulled him out of the window and onto the streets. The pair didn't stop running until they reached the Konoha ANBU watch station and reported what had happened.

* * *

In another village miles to the east, another small boy was hastily packing his bags. He couldn't believe his father's decision. He was only _eight _and his father had promised the Hoshisaki clan he'd _marry_ their daughter? The _Hoshisaki_ clan, of all clans? He was crazy! All that time he'd spent on becoming the next clan leader, wasted. He was furious. He wanted to go up to his father and run an icicle through his gut that minute and end it all! … But he knew better than to do so. The clan wouldn't support a leader who had killed their predecessor. So his only choice was to pack and run. He didn't know where he would go, but he'd run as far west as he could. He took enough clothes as he could carry, as well as his weapons, scrolls, and other necessities. He put on his weapon's strap, slung his ninja bag over his shoulder, and jumped out his bedroom window. He ran to the gates of his clan's private enclosure. The clan enclosure was like a smaller village, located right off of The Hidden Mist. He looked back at the house he grew up in, the beautiful white two story house. He used to play with his cousin, Akairi, in it's surrounding gardens he. He saw the pools into which he would push his little brother, Yuujo, into. Teikaru took a deep breath and turned back around to leave, but he found his path was now blocked by a person, a young someone around his size. He stared wide eyed at the girl who was shaking her head, tears forming in her eyes.

"You can't go, Teikaru." She exclaimed, "You can't go!"

"It's none of your concern, Akairi!" He yelled back at her. How could she possibly understand?

"If you insist on leaving, I'll follow you and beat you and drag you back!"

He didn't understand why this amused him; after all, he cared for Akairi more than any of the others in his clan, but they both knew he out-matched her in almost everything they did. Her making threats like that was down-right hilarious.

"Oh Aka," He said, "Why don't you and go home and save us both some trouble?" He paused to laugh, "We both know you haven't got it in you."

She pursed her lips, about to break into hysterical tears; but instead stomped her foot, a determined look crossing her face. She pulled her hand back and twisted her wrist. It was the Sakurana clan's version of hand signs, which most people mistakenly thought the clan didn't use. She pushed her hand forward and a shower of ice shards went straight for Teikaru. He ducked and rolled off to the side. He came up to a crouch, wrapping one hand around his fist, concentrating his chakra into his hands. He pulled his hands back and then thrust them out towards Akairi. A snake made of ice slithered onto the ground and wrapped itself around Akairi, holding her in place, the very top covered her mouth. He knew the chill of the ice would not harm Akairi; after all the cold never bothered any of the clan, in fact, it made them stronger. But Akairi would not be able to break the ice. She squirmed about, trying to free herself, but the snake gripped tight, not letting go of her. Teikaru took the opportunity and ran for his freedom.

* * *

The Yankaru's were seated around the dinning room table, enjoying dinner and conversation about everyone's day. Daichi received top scores in his exams, Yuria passed her genjutsu exam, Dani hit every one of his targets during his kunai-throwing practice, and Shuroii stayed quiet. She had failed the Substitution Jutsu exam once again and was afraid to report it. She was afraid that her parents would look upon her with mere disappointment. She was a failure, compared to her siblings.

"You're quiet, Shuroii," Her father, Tekiro, said with a smile, "How was your day, sweetheart?"

"Um... I-" Was all she could say before there was a knock at the front door.

Tekiro frowned, wiping his mouth with a napkin before rising from his seat. Sayuka, his wife, looked at her husband's retreating figure with concern. Daichi looked at Shuroii with a mixture of pity and understanding. He had already heard of Shuroii's unsuccessful attempt. Shuroii tried to ignore his gaze, looking down at her plate.

Tekiro came back with a subordinate from his ANBU squad. Because he was wearing the ANBU mask, Shuroii couldn't tell the man's identity.

"I have to go out. Something happened at the Sutaki estate that needs to be investigated." He moved over to kiss Sayuka's cheek. "Don't wait up." He whispered in her ear. He stood up and smiled at his children. "I'll be back late." He looked at Shuroii and winked. "I expect a full report of your day when I get back, young lady." Then the pair left.

Shuroii gulped. She knew he was only kidding, but telling him _everything_ that happened that day? The idea was horrifying.

"So," Said Yuria, "Am I the only one who heard that Shuroii failed the Substitution Jutsu exam again?"

Daichi glared at Yuria, opening his mouth to yell at her, but Shuroii had already run out of the room crying.

* * *

"So, what happened?" Tekiro asked as he changed into his ANBU uniform and mask.

"According to his elder son, Koruko lost it and attacked his family. Kitimiko jumped in Koruko's way to protect the boys, but was killed instantly." The ANBU officer reported.

Tekiro walked out of the locker room and headed to the Sutaki Estate, the ANBU officer followed closely. Tekiro had had dealings with Koruko Sutaki before, but he never imagined that that kind man would kill his loving wife and then try to harm his children. But, of course, things were never as they appeared when it came to the Sutaki clan.

The boys were huddled close again, Reita crying uncontrollably now. Arata was trying to comfort his younger brother but was not having much success. He too felt like crying but knew he had to be strong for Reita. Now orphaned, they needed each other more than anything. Tekiro looked over them with pity and sadness. Children always suffered the most when it came to family tragedies. He thought of his own children, he thought of their fates in a similar situation, and found himself grateful to be wearing the ANBU mask when a single tear rolled down his face. He approached the boys and knelt in front of them as the others in his ANBU squadron swarmed the house to collect evidence. Being leader meant he took on the role of interrogating witnesses; he was not looking forward to questioning these heart-broken boys.

He cleared his throat, unmasked himself and wiped his face of perspiration before looking at the boys. Reita looked up at the man but continued to cry. Arata scrutinized him with a distrustful gaze, he was trying to figure out whether this man was friend or foe. Tekiro understood, after all, this kid had just been to hell and back again.

"What are your names?" Tekiro asked, even though he already knew them.

"Arata," the boy spoke, "and this is Reita." He nodded towards the one who hadn't stopped crying.

"How old are you boys?" he asked then.

"No disrespect sir," the boy named Arata said, "but you already know us. Shuroii is in our grade at the Academy. Just get on with your questions about what happened."

Tekiro blinked in surprise and then chuckled. These boys may look like their father, but they definitely had their mother's attitude. At least this one did.

"Fine then, Arata. How about you tell me what happened?"

And so Arata did, not leaving out a single detail as Tekiro looked at him in horror and disbelief.

* * *

Haji didn't understand what the man was saying. All he could see were his lips moving, his mother on the floor crying, his siblings in shock around him, and he felt like he was separated from the world, watching from a bubble. He could no longer hear, no longer feel, and no longer felt like he could even smile. A messenger coming at this hour of night could mean only one thing: his father was dead. This news meant he would have to run the clan now, as its head. He was only 12 years old, and he would have to take on the role of leading and entire clan.

He fell to his knees; they could no longer support him. His hand went out in front of him instinctively, moving without his realizing it. He stared at the floor in complete shock. It felt like the whole weight of the world was now placed on his shoulders. How could his father, the most accomplished man in the whole clan, have died? Everyone said the war with Konoha was going to be easy, quick, and without causalities. But there stood the messenger; his mother wept and held her pregnant belly, his siblings submitted to the same state of shock. Hiruka was the first to come out of shock and burst into tears. Yuna drew close and hugged Hiruka, murmuring softly to her. The twins had done as Haji; dropping to the ground, staring at it in shock. Suzu was the only one who remained standing, the only one in neither shock nor tears. She glared at everyone, a look of disgust etched onto her face.

"You think your tears will bring Father back?! He knew what he was doing when he left us to go join a stupid war! He LEFT us, and this is what he gets!" She screamed at them all. "We don't need him!"

In a fluid move, Haji rose and tackled his little sister. He couldn't believe her words, her coldness. Here she was talking about _their father_ that way? He would not stand for it. He pulled back his hand to hit her.

Suzu made to spit on his face; what came out, however, wasn't spit, but yellow lighting. It cut right across his face, from below his right eye to his left jaw. He jumped off of her, and held his bleeding face as he screamed. Their mother ran towards him in a panic. She pulled Haji's hands away from his face and inspected the wound. It was shallow, but would most certainly scar.

Suzu stood up, glaring at everyone, as if daring them to reprimand her. Her meaning was clear: should anyone say anything to her, the same would happen to them.

But no one really knew. Despite her hateful and uncaring facade, she was crying and hurting just like the rest of them.

* * *

Tekiro couldn't believe all he had heard. This abuse had gone on for more than just this night. Those attacks on small villages outside of the Hidden Leaf were all Koruko's doing. Tekiro was in shock, at how much destruction the kind man he grew up with was capable of doing. All those lives taken and destroyed, all because of him. And now he had destroyed his family. His wife was dead, his boys were now alone in this world. He knew what the Sutaki clan would do to them, and a surge of anger coursed through him. He knew he couldn't do anything about it, but it didn't stop him from feeling angry, and helpless. Looking at these boys, in pain and desperate for a friend, pained him more than he thought was possible. He couldn't imagine how any father could do this to his children. He made a silent vow: he would never do anything to harm his children in any way.

"S-Sir?" Reita finally spoke.

"Yes?" Tekiro responded.

"W-what's wrong?" His lip trembled, as if to start crying again. It hadn't occurred to Tekiro that he was scowling.

He quickly flashed the boy a reassuring smile, trying to make him feel better. He couldn't image how scared the young lad must be.

"Tell you what boys, how about you come home with me for the night? We can't have you staying here while the investigation continues," he offered.

Too Tekiro's surprise, Arata nodded understandably. He expected protests, he expected they demand to stay with a relative; but looking into Arata's eyes, he knew the boy understood. They would not be welcome anywhere on the clan estate after tonight's events.

"Thank you, sir," Arata said.

* * *

Shuroii was in her room, on her bed, crying into her pillow. It wasn't her fault she couldn't do any jutsu! She tried and tried, but nothing ever worked. She worked tirelessly to do the most simple and basic ninjutsu, but it was impossible. She did fine in her other classes, hand-to-hand combat was forte, she had more than decent aim with shuriken and kunai, and was a quick thinker. But jutsu? She could never do any of it. The Academy had tested her Chakra System for development issues, but everything was normal. It was beyond frustrating.

She heard her bedroom door open and close quietly, and assumed it was her mother. She gripped her pillow tightly, determined not to let her mother see her cry. She also wanted to avoid the look of disappointment on her face.

But the hand she felt on her back was much smaller than her mother's. It was rougher too, callused over from working hard with a particularly huge sword…

Shuroii spun around to look at her older brother, Daichi, smiling at her in the dark. Seeing her brother, Shuroii wanted to start crying all over again. He was Father and Mother's pride and joy. He was perfect in everything he did; top of his class and made everything he did seem simple and effortless. She was constantly compared to him, constantly told to be more like him. Other kids in her class would always pick on her for being a failure, while he was so perfect. All the girls chased after him, but he never seemed to notice. All the boys hated him, but never dared pick a fight with him. Instead, they came after her. They ignored Yuria, her older sister; after all she instigated most of the attacks on Shuroii. Dani, her younger brother, seemed to be following in Daichi's footsteps, so was hardly ever the subject of attack. Shuroii, however, wasn't brilliant like her siblings, so she was an easy target.

She wanted to yell at Daichi for making her life so difficult, yet looking at his worried and caring face, all she could do was jump up and hug him. She needed to feel that at least someone was by her side in all of this.

Daichi put his arms around her and held her tight. Shuroii couldn't see his face, but could sense he'd stopped smiling then. In that moment, it was as if she could read his thoughts. He felt responsible for her pain, for everything that happened to her; maybe, he often thought, if he weren't himself she could be happy. Shuroii pulled back to look at his face, to tell him it wasn't his fault she was a failure, but the words died in her throat.

He flashed her a quick smile, though a second before his face bore complete anguish. He seemed about ready to cry, himself. Shuroii had never seen her brother like that. He only ever seemed calm and confident, like throwing a kunai 200 yards and hitting a target dead-center was no big deal, although, Daichi himself considered being able to do the same while blindfolded with his leg tied to a stump was a much more impressive feat. Now Shuroii realized that he wasn't always so, and she didn't know how to feel about that.

"I came to check on you," he started, "I wanted to make sure you were okay."

Shuroii nodded, "I'm fine. I just didn't expect it to come out like that…"she trailed off.

Daichi nodded, he was always able to read Shuroii like a book. Despite her buried bitterness towards him, Daichi treated Shuroii like his favorite sibling. They were very close, ever since they were really little. He always understood Shuroii, even when she didn't say a word; he always knew when she was upset, and always tried to make her feel better.

They both turned towards her door then, as the sound of rushed footsteps and hushed voices passed by. Daichi was the first to reach the door, followed closely by Shuroii. Daichi opened the door and looked out into the hall. Dani had emerged from his room at that moment as well, a curious look on his face.

"Mom just went running down the hall," he said, "I wonder what's going on."

Daichi immediately stiffened, adopting that calm and calculated demeanor that came so naturally to him. He rushed down the hall, his siblings followed in pursuit. They came to the living room, where they could hear their parents voices form the entrance hall.

"What was I supposed to do, Sayuka, leave them out on the street?" Their father's voice asked.

"A little warning would have been nice! But do _not_ make a habit of this! This is _not_ a foster home!" Their mother responded in a hushed yell.

The siblings all looked at each other. They had guests? Perhaps it was someone their own age? They couldn't be with their parents now, though; there was no way either Tekiro or Sayuka would speak that way in front of guests, so where were they? The siblings started towards the kitchen, the only possible place they could be.

Shuroii gasped when she saw the two boys; they shared dark hair and the way they both carried themselves, as if either could, at any second, burst into a fight and win without contest was unmistakably recognizable.

It was Arata and Reita Sutaki, two of her classmates.

* * *

Arata turned at the sound. He knew the three at the doorway from the Academy; Daichi, the oldest, Shuroii who was in many of his and Reita's classes, and the youngest one, Dani. He knew he should have expected to see them, but was surprised all the same. He couldn't understand why, but Shuroii was looking at them with horror. Daichi looked confused, like he was about to ask a thousand questions. And Dani looked like he didn't know whether to say hi or call for help. Arata was slightly amused by that.

At that moment, the ANBU captain, Tekiro Yankaru, came in. He also seemed surprised to see his children. It was well into the night and it was expected of them to be in bed. Close behind him was their mother, whose name Arata did not know. She frowned at her children.

"I'm surprised Yuria is the only one following curfew," she scolded.

They looked at each other in embarrassment, Shuroii's cheeks turned bright red. They mumbled apologies.

"I guess it's alright. This way only one of them will be surprised by two additions to the breakfast table in the morning," Captain Tekiro said with a sigh. He looked nervously at his wife, who returned a rather annoyed glance. Arata couldn't blame her for being upset. They had just popped up without warning.

Tekiro smiled at his children then. "You all know Arata and Reita from school, right?"

They all nodded, exchanged hellos and other nervous pleasantries. Daichi still looked as if he wanted to shoot out questions at the newcomers like gunfire. For as long as he could remember, Daichi had proved to be a source of irritation for Arata; though not for the reasons his classmates held. It infuriated Arata that Daichi, the crown jewel of the Yankaru clan, excelled at everything so effortlessly. Arata didn't care that all the girls flocked to Daichi; that was childish, but he hated him for being naturally talented in the shinobi arts. Everything came easily for the famous Daichi Yankaru, while everyone else had to work hard for what little they had.

It was why he secretly admired Shuroii. She put on a brave face everyday, stood up for herself when everyone came at her with nothing but insults. She worked harder than anyone he knew, studied for every test harder then should be humanly possible, and never gave up when she failed at performing a jutsu. Arata didn't think there should be more "Daichi's" in the ninja world, but more "Shuroii's," of course, he'd never admit any of this out loud.

Reita moved farther out of sight, hiding behind his brother. He was nervous and shy around others, and being stared at from all directions was not helping him much. He whimpered a bit, grabbing onto Arata's shoulder. The instinct to protect sparked within Arata. He let his brother hide behind him, lifting his chin up slightly, ready to defend him.

Daichi cleared his throat and spoke, "Dad, w-"

"They are our guests, for now. They were unable to stay at home for the night, so I offered they stay with us," he immediately interrupted, giving his children a look which Arata didn't quite understand, though they seemed to. They all looked down at the floor nervously, perhaps with guilt. It confused Arata.

The woman, the captain's wife, turned to look at the boys again. Her annoyed demeanor and appearance had all but dissolved now, replaced by sympathy. Arata almost wished she'd look at them with aggravation rather than pity; he didn't want anyone's pity.

She then turned to her children and spoke. "You three should be in bed."

It was all three children needed to make a hasty retreated from the kitchen and run down the hallway. There was the clever din of doors opening and shutting, but Arata guessed the siblings were all in one room, discussing the events of what had occurred and were most certainly _not_ sleeping. Two of the noises had been a cover.

The woman seemed to suspect the same as Arata, but took a seat at the kitchen table instead of leaving to expose her children.

Reita seemed to relax once the others left. He took a half step from Arata, but still stayed close.

"Are you boys hungry?" Tekiro asked, trying to lighten the mood.

Both shook their heads, in sync with the other. Both shifted nervously on their feet. Both looked about.

"They must be tired," the woman said. "Honey, why don't you show them to the guest rooms?"

Tekiro mused his wife had not fully forgiven him, as he led the boys down the hall. Hushed voices froze when they passed by one of the closed doors. Arata's mouth twitched at the corner, almost smirking. He had been right. Tekiro frowned at the door, taking a mental note to break up his children's midnight talk after getting his young guests settled in.

Arata insisted they only needed one room, seeing as Reita would most likely wander into his room anyways. Tekiro left them, leaving them alone for the night. The two brothers laid together on a bed, one much bigger and plusher than any they were used to, in an fancy-looking room. Arata tried to swallow the bitterness in his mouth; it must be nice having as much money as the Yankaru Clan obviously had. But he was grateful at the same time. He would not have a roof to sleep under if not for the Captain. He looked over at his brother, who had fallen asleep instantaneously, hugging a pillow.

Looking at Reita then, it truly sunk in that they were on their own now, he knew what his Clan would do to them eventually. They would be thrown out, kicked out and forced to live as outcasts. They would not be allowed to partake in anything Clan-related, never allowed to have contact with any of it's members again. That suited Arata just fine; he'd never had many friends in the clan, never liked many of them. Reita, however, got along with everyone. It would probably make him start crying again: knowing he wasn't welcome, disliked…

_No._ Arata thought. _I refuse to see my brother in pain again. I refuse to let anything happen to us. I will be stronger, I will work harder than anyone. I will become the strongest Shinobi to come out of my Clan. I will have them begging on their knees for our forgiveness, for our return home. They will regret the day they ever tossed us out like trash._

_I refuse to lose, at anything, no matter how small or large. I will never give up, never back down._

_From this day on, I will never, ever, lose._

* * *

From the moment the Yankaru siblings had left the room, they had had no intention of going to bed. Dani and Shuroii opened and shut their doors as they walked past them and all three went to Daichi's room, where they were surprised to see Yuria awaiting them.

"You guys are so lame," she snapped, glaring at them, "can't even sneak out of _bed_ at night without being caught."

Daichi tilted his chin back in defiance. He didn't like the way Yuria talked to people, as if she were better than everyone else and their mother. He definitely didn't like her criticizing him.

"So you were up!" Dani exclaimed.

Yuria rolled her eyes. "Like I was going to miss that? And, I even know why they're here."

The three siblings crowded about her expectantly.

She sighed, telling her story in a rather bored monotone, occasionally inspecting her nails. "Seems like old man Koruko Sutaki lost it. Went totally _psycho_. He's the one responsible for all those attacks on small villages outside of Konoha. He's killed over 300 people for his shear enjoyment. And tonight, he trashed his place, ripping it all apart, and killed his wife right in front of Dumb and Dumber across the hall."

Shuroii hands moved to cover her mouth, in shock. Dani looked like as if he'd just been smacked in the face. Daichi was boiled over with rage. She dared _insult _two boys, the same age as Shuroii, who had just had their lives torn apart? Telling the story in that way?

"Get out," Daichi growled.

Yuria raised an eyebrow. "That's what you say to someone who just fed you intelligence? How un-shinobi like of you."

Daichi grabbed her by the collar, dragged her to the door, and pushed her out into the hallway, locking his door without a sound.

"D-..Daichi?" Dani began. "You okay?"

"I'm fine, Dani," Daichi said, taking a deep breath, trying to calm himself. Yuria got under his skin like no one else. She would have a great career within the interrogation squad, purposely using her words to tear people apart as she seemed to thoroughly enjoy.

"You think…they'll be staying with us awhile?" Shuroii said nervously.

Daichi could tell what she was thinking, he always could. She hid most of what happened to her at school from mother and father, and was worried that the presence of the other two would oust her secret. She'd never voice this worry knowing what had happened to the two siblings, all-the-same she didn't want them to spoil her secret.

"I don't think so," Daichi said, not just for her benefit, but because he really believed so.

"Why?" Dani asked, a confused look on his face. "I mean, they need a place to stay. Why not here?"

"Because," Daichi began, "you saw Mom. She was furious Dad brought them home. She has enough to deal with, raising us. Adding two more to that load? No way. I'm sure she wants to help them, but it would be too much raising us all."

The way he put it seemed cruel, knowing the situation was much more complicated than that. But, he knew of his mother's growing sickness, the others didn't; and he'd promised his parents he wouldn't say a word. Sayuka could barely handle her own kids; there was no way she could take on two more, for her own health. He also had the feeling that Arata didn't want to stay here long-term. His younger brother, Reita, would go wherever he did. Daichi knew he'd follow his siblings anywhere too.

Dani looked down in disappointment. "It would have been cool having two more brothers…" he mumbled.

Daichi smiled, then heard footsteps out in the hall. _It must be Dad, showing the boys to their rooms_, he thought.

Once the footsteps had passed, Daichi peeked out the doorway. He waited until his father and the pair had disappeared into a guest room, before moving Shuroii and Dani into their own rooms, biding them good night before returning to his.

As soon as he jumped into bed and settled in, his father opened the door, expecting to break them up and send them to bed. He frowned when he only saw his eldest son, but came in and shut the door behind him, nonetheless. He moved towards and sat down next to Daichi.

"I know you're not asleep, young man," he said.

Daichi opened his eyes, flashing him an apologetic smile. He had expected to be greeted by his father's grin, not looking as if he'd aged ten years in a matter of four hours. This worried Daichi. He sat up, smile forgotten.

"What's wrong, Father?" Daichi ventured after a moment of silence.

Tekiro looked at Daichi then, looked straight into his eyes. There was a nuance in his father's eyes that Daichi couldn't decipher, and that worried him.

The man remained silent for what seemed an eternity, but when he finally spoke, his words rippled down Daichi's spine.

"I know what made their father snap. There's a risk that couples the Sutaki Clan's Kekkei Genkai: Reverse Possession. And the spirit which haunted him is now inside his son, Arata."

* * *

_Next morning_

Arata woke with a start, bolting upright. At first he wasn't sure where he was. Then he remembered the proceedings of the night before. He shook his head in a vain attempt to make the memory disappear, not wanting to re-live it anymore. He needed to get past it, move on.

He heard a shower running and realized his brother was no longer by his side. He looked over his shoulder and noticed the bathroom door in their room was shut. He wondered what time it was and for how long they'd been asleep. It was bright outside, he deduced it was an hour his father would not have approved of their waking; but at the moment, Arata didn't give a damn.

He slid off the bed and attempted to straighten the covers. Neither of them had used the covers the night before, merely laid on top of them. He couldn't pull the covers back to tight perfection they were the night before, but tried his best. He gave up when his brother came out, dressed in clothes they had hastily packed the night before. Arata ducked into the bathroom to change, taking the bag he packed with him. He wondered how they had appeared in the room during the night without their noticing.

He came out again to find his brother pacing about the room, nervous.

"You alright, Reita?" Arata asked.

Reita looked up, slightly startled. "Y-yeah, fine. I just…didn't want to leave without you."

Reita was always nervous around others, especially those he didn't know. But once he'd broken out of his shell, it was hard to have him act normal again. Once he felt comfortable around a person, he would bound off walls and be "the life of the party." It amazed Arata how easily he could change personalities.

"C'mon, squirt," Arata grabbed his arm and pulled open the door.

He dragged his brother down the hall, noting that the house didn't seem quite as immense in the morning. He could see clearly, and the morning's splendor destroyed the illusion of an eternally long hallway imposed by the shadows of yesterday's dark night. Arata stepped into the kitchen, which, given the time of day, he figured would be empty. To his surprise, it appeared all the children had also just woken up. Dani rested his head on the table, obviously falling asleep. Shuroii yawned and Yuria seemed to lack the required energy to wear her trademark scowl. Only Daichi appeared wide awake; which infuriated Arata, for no reason at all.

Captain Tekiro came in through the other door at that moment. He looked Arata and Reita over and smiled. He motioned to the empty seats next to Shuroii, offering them. Shuroii looked uncomfortable at the notion; Arata paid no mind and sat down next to her, Reita sat next to Arata.

Tension loomed over the dining table. Arata felt it thicken, he mused it would become visible at any second. The six children looked around the table at each other; all became fully alert as a staring contest materialized, each wondering who would be the first to break. Arata figured his only competition would be Yuria, he had heard of her reputation of being able to cut apart a person with a single look.

Reita and Shuroii seemed to break and whimper simultaneously, they lowered their heads. Dani, who was seated next to Shuroii, quickly followed. Arata looked at both Yuria and Daichi, an easy feat as the two were sitting next to the other. Two pairs of Yankaru eyes narrowed then, scrutinizing Arata, sizing him up. Arata took note of Daichi, who bore a smug air, as if he'd never lost.

The thought sent a chill down Arata's spine, and caused him to remember the promise he'd made last night. _I will never, ever, lose. _Even as childish and small as a staring contest was, he wasn't about to lose this either.

It seemed Daichi couldn't handle it anymore and looked away. In turn, Yuria, sensing her back-up was gone, glanced towards Daichi with a hint of concern and slight annoyance which quickly dissipated. She looked down at her hands.

Arata let himself wear a triumphant expression, for a moment, as his features soon contorted to their usual inscrutable state.

All the while, Mr. and Mrs. Yankaru looked on with a mixture of confusion and curiosity, throwing the other the same humored expression as they handed out breakfast to the children and watched them as they ate in silence and looked only at their plates. When it was time to leave for the Academy, they each politely said their good-byes and thank-yous before bolting out the door at full speed.

* * *

Teikaru was bleeding. He was tired, hungry, and thirsty. He hadn't brought much in the way of rations and found himself regretting this. He knew which plants were edible, however, and was even able to take down a wild deer with his Ice Jutsu; unfortunately, he was unable to keep a fire going long enough to properly cook his findings. He may have been able to withstand heat better than most in his clan, but even he felt prey to heat stroke when exposed to an open flame for extended periods of time. Teikaru rubbed the black marks on his cheek, and remembered the time he was tested on his ability to tolerate heat. It was known that children's resistance to heat within the main branch was improving, however, this tolerability was incomparable to that of a normal person's. Teikaru was the first who's tolerance reach close to that level. Hot weather didn't bother him much, but open flame shocked his nervous system. So now, he tended to avoid hunting for meat and would instead scavenge for plants.

He couldn't remember the last time he'd slept, or how long he had been on the run. Nine hours, maybe? It was full light now, the forest started to awake from its slumber. Still, Teikaru ran; he no longer worried about being followed. He'd taken a dip in at least five streams, changed course eight or nine times, and had covered his tracks well; after all, he'd been trained by the best. Their mistake, as he would now make them pay.

He'd make them all pay one day. How _dare_ they run their heir out of his own home? How _dare_ they push him into marriage? He was Teikaru Sakurana, the eldest son of the Clan leader, the most gifted of all the youth in the clan. He'd be back one day, and exact his revenge on them all. He'd wipe out the Hoshisaki Clan for requesting such a deal! Every last one of them! He'd lead his Clan to glory, conquering their most vile rivals. He'd lead the charge against the barbarians himself; with his father on his knees, begging for forgiveness.

Forgiveness, something Teikaru was not willing to confer.

At the Sakurana compound, all was silent. No one on the outside looking in would think anything was wrong; just a lazy morning for the Sakurana's as per usual. No one would think that only a handful of adults were left, looking after the children in the main house, protecting them.

Protecting them, while the rest of the clan was off at war. Lord Sakurana accused the Hoshisaki of abducting his son; accused it was their play all along, not for peace. He led the slaughter on the oblivious Clan, who had just celebrated the end of their blood feud. Not many were spared; only ten percent of the once great Clan was left. The main branch had been completely wiped out, except for three children; the Sakurana could not bring themselves to harm children. The boy, the eldest, held his little sisters. Lord Sakurana looked around him, he saw the slain and the fallen, and realized his son was not amongst them, was no where to be seen. There was no evidence of his ever setting foot upon Hoshisaki grounds.

He slowly came to realize the damage he had caused, all in vain. Realized he had just made the biggest mistake of his life, and his son was forever gone.

He fell to the ground on his knees, pounding the ground with every sob that ripped through his body.

* * *

Suzu sat at her window seat, which overlooked the garden that circumvented the entire Kushito mansion, sharpening one of her arrows. The repeated back-and-forth motions lulled her mind, calmed her down. Her thoughts slowed down, dulling her mind, when she focused on the to-and-fro motion.

_Back, forth, back, forth_, Her father was dead.

_Back, forth, back, forth_, She had declared her hatred to her entire family.

_Back, forth, back, forth_, She had caused Haji's injury, a heartless act.

_Back, forth, back, forth_, She was a monster, no longer able to feel.

She gripped the shaft of her arrow so tightly it snapped in her hand. She realized she was bleeding only after she saw her blood. She didn't feel the pain.

_She didn't feel the pain._

She looked into her mirror. No tears came from her eyes. It was as if she was unable to cry, unable to show any signs of grief or sorrow. She, herself, was starting to believe she didn't know how to. The fact that she couldn't feel anything at all anymore should have scared her, but it didn't. She thought of how proud her superiors would be as she grew older. How she could cut all feeling from herself and work robotically. She started to think of her future, a future which no longer included her father. She waited for the pain of a broken heart, but it never came. She wasn't even sure if she'd ever felt any pain in the first place. Perhaps her mind had made it all up, merely let her experience what it expected pain felt like. Suzu was starting to believe that she imagined her pain.

She slid open her window and jumped out. She picked her way to one of the many garden hoses and washed her wound. It wasn't very deep, and bled little. She returned to her room where she wrapped her wound as best she could, before grabbing her bow and quiver and jumping back out. She made her way to her homemade target and began shooting. It sometimes bored Suzu, she always hit bull's-eye. She once shot an arrow clean through another on her target, completely shattering it into unrecognizable pieces. Her father had been so impressed he threw her over his shoulders and walked about the whole estate, telling anyone they came across what she had done.

Suzu paused again, lowering her bow and arrow for a second, waiting for the memory to turn painful, or even joyful. No emotion came. She raised her bow again and shot an apple right out of a nearby tree, the apple itself remained intact. The same could not be said about its stem.

In her dreams, Suzu could feel again. Her dreams were a mixture of images, mostly of her father under a bloody sheet, laying on a table. But when she awoke, all feeling left her. After awhile, the dreams faded. Suzu excelled at all her classes, and graduated at the top of her class. Instead of being assigned a regular team, she joined the Kumo Archers. She would be assigned to different teams who needed her expertise when called upon. When it came to test for rank, she would join other archers who were also testing. It would be months before she gained enough experience for that. She had to go on multiple missions in order to even be considered. Her brother, Haji, would look at her with disapproval. He was only 14, but acted like a full-fledged adult.

When her mother had a miscarriage the day after the news of her father's death arrived, Suzu didn't care. When she took a new lover, Suzu didn't care. When she became pregnant again, Suzu didn't care. When her mother died in childbirth, Suzu didn't care. Suzu went to the funeral, and watched Yuna who held their new half-sister. The girl's father vanished after the birth; no one knew where he went, and Suzu didn't care. Her brother, however, cared much about these things. And because he cared so much, he couldn't comprehend how Suzu could care so little. He couldn't believe that this robot was once his little sister.

However, there persisted a small part of Suzu, buried in a deep, dark place within her, which cried out to be heard; instead, it was suppressed by all of Suzu's will and was not allowed to surface.

Suzu knew subconsciously this little piece of her would shatter everything she'd worked so hard to achieve. She knew she would feel again, if this piece surfaced. And she would never let that happen.

No matter what.

* * *

Five days passed before Teikaru finally arrived in Konoha. He'd become lost multiple times. He was close to death, severely dehydrated. Ninjas on watch duty saw him coming, and rushed to help him as he collapsed outside the gate.

He awoke in the hospital, 3 days later.

Teikaru slowly opened his eyes. He felt the sting of the sunburn that covered his body. He tried not to move too much, knowing it would ease the pain. He looked to the side, sensing someone was there next to him.

The man was very old, he was dressed in the traditional Kage attire, with the discrepancy that where the Mizukage wore blue, he wore red. His hat was in his hands, bearing the fire symbol instead of the water symbol. He looked slowly up to the man's eyes. There was a curious glint in them, but also a lot of pain and sorrow. Teikaru knew immediately this man had faced much tragedy in his life. It humbled Teikaru slightly, being in this old man's presence. It was the first time in his life Teikaru could remember ever feeling humble.

"What is your name, young man?" The old man asked.

"Teikaru," Teikaru replied. Hoping the man would not ask for his surname in fear he would recognize it.

A pause. "And your last name?"

Teikaru knew it was a long shot anyways. But he couldn't bring himself to lie to this old man. "Sakurana." He said at last.

The old man whistled. "Long distance you've traveled by yourself. And judging by that mark on your face… you're from your clan's main branch, aren't you?"

Teikaru was taken aback by how knowledgeable this man seemed to be. So, it wasn't only tragedy this man had seen; he'd been around.

The man chuckled. "Don't look so surprised. I have my spies in many places." The old man winked at Teikaru. He bore an air of mischief that didn't really reach his eyes; they still looked sad.

"E-even in the Mist? That seems impossible… That they were found out." Teikaru said.

"They are very good at what they do. Now, why have you come here Teikaru?"

Teikaru told him his story, the old man's facial expression gave nothing of his inner thoughts away, which greatly bothered Teikaru. He was used to being able to read people like books.

"I see…" Was all the old man said.

Teikaru waited for more, but nothing came. He started to fidget as the silence continued.

"Well, " he said at last, "it seems we'll need to find you a place to live, and then get you enrolled at the Academy here. But not a word to anyone on where you came from. Lie, if you have to, but do not say where you are from. Most people here do not know of the Sakurana. Only we old folk remember. You will be able to keep your name."

Teikaru nodded understandingly. He was now at his new home, for better or worse.

Teikaru arrived side-by-side with the Hokage, introducing himself. Teikaru had already figured as much, still it was nice when the Hokage made his intention clear. The Hokage would find him an apartment and pick him up after the day was over to bring him there. Teikaru was nervous, something he wasn't used to. He always did well at Kiri's Academy, but how would he do here? And how would the other children react to him? After all, the Hokage_ himself_ had escorted him in. He didn't want to stick out like a sore thumb here, like he did back home. He, for once in his life, just wanted to blend in. His cockiness started to fade as reality set in.

"Do not worry; it seems you weren't the only one late today."

A boy, older than he, with dark blue hair and bright green eyes stood arguing with someone younger than him, probably around Teikaru's age. He had black hair and really bright blue eyes. They seemed to glow, as he spit out angry words at the older boy. A boy, who had to be the younger's twin, as they shared the same dark hair and bright blue eyes, stood next to his brother, failing at prying him away from their elder peer. Three others were with them. These had to be siblings of the older boy, as they all had the same green eyes. There were two girls and one boy. The taller shared the same blue hair as the eldest, though lighter, while the shorter had dark hair that shone purplish in the sun. The third, the youngest one, was black-haired. The four siblings shared different shades of tan skin, though the twin brothers were darker. It wouldn't surprise Teikaru if one of their parents bore a very deep skin color.

The boys' argument seemed to escalate quickly. They seemed ready to hit each other. He couldn't really make out what they were saying, as each was trying to talk over the other. He only caught swear words and insults, all too awful to repeat. Their siblings were trying to pull them apart from each other, but only managed to hold them back. Both boys seemed incredibly physically strong.

The Hokage cleared his throat and all of them stopped talking at once. Teikaru wasn't sure how they managed to hear him, but they all turned towards the Hokage in horror, except for the one boy with blue eyes, the elder twin. He seemed genuinely annoyed over being interrupted. Teikaru was starting to like this guy.

"Shouldn't you all be in class?" The Hokage asked.

They all ran towards the door, but the Hokage stopped the twin boys and the girl with purplish hair before they could get by. She seemed to be more of a nervous wreck than Teikaru was.

"Why don't you three show Teikaru around?" The Hokage spoke again. "He's new to the village and needs help getting around today. His name is Teikaru."

The one twin smiled at Teikaru and raised his hand in a wave. "My name's Reita. Reita Sutaki."

The girl offered her hand and Teikaru shook it. "My name is Shuroii Yankaru. Pleased to meet you."

The other boy remained silent, looking over Teikaru, clearly sizing him up. Teikaru waited for him to introduce himself.

"Arata," was all the boy said after a while.

Teikaru nodded, smiled nervously and said hello. He wasn't used to this, feeling so awkward. He was used to instant respect because of his lineage, but realized it wouldn't be like that here. Here, he would have to earn respect.

"You three play nice." The Hokage said with a chuckle as he walked off.

Shuroii was frightened when she noticed the Hokage standing there. She thought they would have all been in deep trouble for being so late. But now, she found herself showing the new boy, Teikaru, around. It was rare to have someone from another country immigrate here and start the Academy. She knew what it was like to be outside the norm, so she tried to strike up a friendship with him. He was very nice, if a bit shy from being in a new place. Arata was mostly silent walking with them, but Reita had joined in on Shuroii and Teikaru's conversation.

"So dude, you haven't told us yet! Where did you move from?" Reita asked.

Teikaru paused for a second, but quickly recovered. It was something she knew very well. It was something Daichi did when one asked him a question he was hoping he wouldn't be asked. Shuroii thought that was very weird and made a mental note of it.

"The water country. I'm from a very small village. And it's a lot colder there than here," he answered.

Reita was amazed. "Wow, that's really far!"

Teikaru smiled at Reita. He seemed to grow more and more relaxed.

"Yeah, it took me a long time to get here. Had to walk all the way here."

Reita looked at him in awe. His expression made Shuroii want to giggle, but she didn't want to embarrass him.

"Oi," someone said behind them, a voice Shuroii recognized. She immediately stiffed. She could feel the blood drain out of her face. It was one of the kids that always picked on her.

Arata looked at her over his shoulder, while the other boys turned to look at who had spoken, confused.

"Can we help you with something?" Teikaru said.

The kid, a boy in Daichi's grade, was one of the biggest students in the Academy. He looked much older than eleven, as if he took steroids. Shuroii had once voiced this to him and was smacked across the face in return. She wore a bruise for days. His face bore that permanent scowl which didn't make him at all attractive, neither did his constant bullying every of any kid who looked his way.

He approached Shuroii and, when he got close enough, grabbed her low ponytail and pulled hard, nearly lifting her off the ground. She cried out in pain.

"You were supposed to carry my books to class this morning, Yankaru! Now, you've forced me to be late! You know what I do to kids who make me late?!" He pulled on her hair harder, lifting her off the ground for a second.

"How about you just carry them yourself?!" Teikaru yelled.

He looked at Teikaru then, forgetting Shuroii. He let go of her hair and she threw him a warning-look trying to say: stay out of it. It was bad enough she got beat up, there was no need for any of them to be hurt as well.

"What did you just say to me, punk?!" He tried to land a punch on Teikaru, but Teikaru was lightning fast. He ducked under the boy's heavy fist and swung a kick towards his rib cage. The force of Teikaru's blow knocked the wind out of him and he lumbered to the ground. But Teikaru didn't stop there. He kicked him in the stomach, knocking him on his side before kicking him in the face. Blood poured out of the boy's nose as he groaned in pain.

Shuroii stood frozen, in shock. This all happened in seconds, even if her mind had captured the scene in slow motion. She had only ever seen one other person move like that before. Daichi.

Then Arata snorted, stirring Shuroii, "Small village, eh?"

Teikaru looked embarrassed and looked away. "We should probably leave before any teachers walk by."

The three ran to their classes.

At recess, later that day, they met up at the wooden swing outside. Shuroii sat in it and Reita pushed her. As the days passed, during the time Arata and Reita stayed with her family, Shuroii and the latter had grown incredibly close. Arata remained distant and never talked much, but Shuroii and Reita got along very well. She never would have thought she would have much in common with him, but they shared a similar trait in constructing jokes out of anything someone said. They never stopped laughing when they were together.

Arata watched the pair, whilst leaning against a tree as Teikaru walked up. He amused the three with the latest rumor: the boy had said he'd tripped and fallen and broken his nose.

"I guess he didn't want to admit an eight year old kicked his ass," Arata said.

They all laughed accept Arata, who looked at them blankly. This made it all the more amusing and the three laughed harder. They talked about how their day had been thus far and Teikaru would often point out other kids and ask for their names, and would tell a story about the person he pointed out. Many of them seemed to give him a hard time, but Teikaru didn't seem to mind at all, like he was used to it. Shuroii wished she could be more like that, not able to care like that. But at least she had friends now. She knew Teikaru would stick up for her, and that made her feel a lot better. No way would anyone get to her now.

* * *

Arata didn't buy Teikaru's story at all. He had some training before coming to Konoha. No way in hell was he from a small village. Still, Arata liked him. He seemed only to lie about where he came from, he was honest about everything else. Arata could understand the need to hide something, after all he'd hidden his father's affairs for quite some time. When the Hokage arrived to pick up Teikaru at the end of the day, Teikaru turned and waved and left with him. Arata, Reita, and Shuroii walked back to the Yankaru compound. Arata was extremely nervous, though he had begun to perfect masking his emotions. Tonight it would be made official. They would go to before the Sutaki Clan leaders and be exiled. They would be branded around their wrists as Clan enemies and be cast out. Arata just wanted to get it over with.

But, he was worried about Reita. He hadn't told him what would happen tonight. He didn't have the heart to. But, he would be there for his brother afterwards. They would be alone again, forced to live in a place the Clan thought suited them. They wouldn't return to the Yankaru complex, or to Shuroii after that night.

Five days had passed. That was all it took for Arata to like that place enough to know he would miss it. It infuriated him that he had to "report how his day was" at the dinner table. He hated talking, especially in front of people. The bed he slept in was way much too soft for his liking. The place was far too fancy and there wasn't an area where there wasn't something to look at. Shuroii's mother, whose name he now knew to be Sayuka, had warmed up to them and would tuck them in at night. It all annoyed Arata, every last bit of it, especially Prince Daichi; but, it ached his heart knowing they wouldn't return again. He knew it would ruin Reita.

When the three returned, Tekiro awaited them. He asked to speak with Arata alone. Shuroii pulled Reita, who didn't want to leave Arata, away. He was grateful that Reita trusted Shuroii enough to be around her without Arata 's presence. He knew his brother didn't like being away from him.

Arata followed Tekiro into a room he hadn't noticed before. Apparently part of the wall slid into the wall next to it. Inside he found a library of scrolls, which covered every free surface from floor to ceiling. Ladders where attached to rolling slides at points all about the room. The room was large. It seemed to run the entire length of the house, at least 100 yards. Arata was amazed he'd missed this.

In the center, a circle had been drawn. Symbols were written all about it's circumference. Candles were lit at certain spots. Arata grew nervous.

"Were you performing a seal, sir?" he asked nervously.

Tekiro remained silent, and merely led Arata towards the circle. Arata started to fight against it. He was growing nervous. Something in those markings didn't sit well with him. Something inside him told him to run.

He found himself swelling with anger, now angrier than he'd ever felt before in his life. He lashed out at Tekiro, trying to hurt him, blinded by fury. How dare he try to make him do something he didn't want to do? He wasn't going any closer to that circle. He'd kill Tekiro before he drew closer.

And Arata almost did. He would have if Tekiro wasn't as skilled as he was. Arata aimed a punch so fast and square at Tekiro's nose that his fist would have lodged into his brain had he not stopped the punch. This only infuriated Arata more, and he charged.

* * *

Tekiro was expecting this. Now he knew without a doubt that Arata was possessed. With how fast he switched from his normal self to acting like a caged animal, it was certain. He had done a lot of research on the effects of the Reverse Possession. He had developed a seal that would help Arata, but not cleanse him. He was not as skilled with seals as his sister, the top sealer of the Clan, was, but couldn't ask her for her help. It was better for Arata if less people knew about this incident.

If Arata's Clan knew about this, they would sentence him to death immediately. They would kill their father and possibly Reita. Tekiro owed the boys this much: to keep them safe.

Tekiro side-stepped Arata, who was growing increasingly worse. He stepped closer to the circle and Arata followed. He could tell by the slight glow to Arata's eyes that he was currently possessed. He wouldn't realize this later. He would think it was all him, when it's not. Tekiro had found that much out. That was the danger. Very much like the normal Sutaki Clan jutsu, no one knew when they were being Reverse Possessed. It was like the user's own jutsu was being used by the dead soul of its last victim on the user. Because of this lack of knowing, there was no way to help or stop it until it was too late. Only someone who knew what they were looking for could recognize it. And Tekiro recognized the signs.

When he crossed into the circle, he expelled chakra into it immediately. He waited for Arata to spring towards him before closing the seal.

Now, neither of them could leave until either Tekiro died or the seal was complete.

Tekiro knew he would have to work quickly. The dead human's soul that possessed Arata would give him both strength and chakra to fight him. He would find himself at a disadvantaged, in trying to keep the seal going and fighting simultaneously. So far he was able to dodge all of Arata's advances, but wouldn't be able to for much longer. He had to end this now.

Tekiro spun around behind Arata. It wasn't a move Arata was expecting, and it was much too late to do anything. Tekiro grabbed him by the sleeve of his jacket and slammed him to the ground. He hoped he hadn't hurt him, but he had to complete the seal _now_.

He quickly performed hand signs while Arata remained stunned. Symbols picked themselves off the floor and hovered over Arata's body, then drew ever close, until they disappeared under his clothes. He was pinned to the ground, unable to move at all. He snarled like an animal, thrashing about. He was no longer the boy Tekiro had come to know. He tried to push aside how disturbed he was and preformed the seal.

Arata started screaming in agony. He was screaming words at the top of his lungs, but Tekiro tried not to focus on them. Tekiro could feel the seal forming, a small design on his spine, close to his heart. He could feel the spirit suppressed inside the seal, fighting to break through. It was just as Tekiro had feared: the seal would need to be strengthened at least once every year. If not, it would break and Arata would be more dangerous and uncontrollable than if he'd never been given the seal.

Tekiro wept silently while holding the unconscious boy, who had begged him to stop while in agony. He couldn't believe what he'd just done.

Neither could his daughter, Shuroii, who had watched the entire thing from the start, from the door which had been left wide open.

* * *

Tekiro explained what had happened to Arata when he came to. Arata hurt all over, especially his head. All he wanted to do was sleep, but he understood what had occurred. He was afraid at what could happen if the seal ever broke. Tekiro informed him that the seal was only as strong as his will. If Arata willed it hard enough, the seal would stay in place. But if his will ever wavered, it would break. After that, Tekiro didn't know what would happen.

His and his brother's trial came and went. It proceeded exactly the way he thought it would. Thrown out, cast away, and forced to live in disgrace. But he did something that he didn't expect to do. He stood up straight and glared at them all, in turn, until they fidgeted in discomfort and said: "Good riddance to all of you." All before storming out, pulling his brother with him. They were moved into a small room and were made to hold out their hands. Their wrists were covered in a paper-like wrap. A man made a few hand signs and the paper burst into flames. Reita cried out in pain, but Arata bit his lip so hard he tore through flesh and started to bleed. He refused to show he was in pain. After the ritual was concluded, they were dropped off at their new home. It was small, with one decent sized room which functioned as both living room and kitchen and led off to three small bedrooms and two bathrooms. It was already furnished, with what looked like all that had remained intact of their old home.

When they were finally left alone, Reita slumped to the ground and began to sob. Arata knelt and held his brother until it was bright outside.

* * *

Shuroii confronted her father the second he returned home after dropping Arata and Reita off at the Sutaki Compound. She demanded to know what he had done to Arata. Tekiro, surprised and worried by what she had seen, pulled her into his study, the room hidden behind the wall, and told her all that had happened. He made her promise not to tell anyone, that it could cost Arata and Reita their lives if she said anything, and she promised. She never told anyone, not even Arata, that she knew this secret.

* * *

As the years passed, Shuroii, Reita, Teikaru, and Arata became close friends. Arata talked less and less, but they began to understand his silent language. Teikaru and Arata took up the duty of being Shuroii's bodyguards. No one messed with any of them, after all Teikaru and Arata were tied for top of their class. Arata exploded with talent after he was disgraced; he refused to remain in that state, and Shuroii admired that about him. Reita started to become more confident and didn't do badly at the Academy either. Only Shuroii still struggled. She was able to do some basic ninjutsu by this time, but not much. It had taken her years of practice to finally do what she could do now. When they all graduated, they sat together when they were assigned teams. Teikaru's name was called first, and then Mikota Higura's, a shy boy who was more into weapons than anything else, and finally Maika Kanoka's, who was from the Higura Clan as well. Teikaru gave his friends an apologetic smile and withdrew to join his newly-formed team.

Arata, Reita, and Shuroii's names were called together, officially making them a team. Reita and Shuroii simultaneously shot out of their seats and shouted with joy. Arata sat there, his perfected poker face not giving way to any emotion.

As for the rest of Shuroii's siblings. Yuria graduated two years before; she was already a Chunnin, working at the hospital to become a medical ninja. Her whole family found themselves in shock that Yuria would want to help others by becoming a medical ninja. Dani would graduate the Academy the following year, but was doing well in his studies.

Daichi, on the other hand, was already a very successful shinobi. His entire team passed the Chunnin Exam on their first try, only after a year of being Genins. He was in a team with twins who hailed from one of the most prestigious clans in Konoha, the Tsuchigami Clan. Hyosuke was Daichi's best friend, and his sister, Yoko, got along very well with him. They were all Jonin by the time they were 15. Moreover, Daichi and Hyosuke were selected to join the Hunter Corps, a small, elite, subdivision of the ANBU Black Ops, whose members were tasked with hunting down rouge shinobi. Yoko was devastated she was not selected as well, and refused to talk to either of them for a very long time. Hyosuke and Daichi would travel the world hunting shinobi that abandoned Konoha, working as a tag team. The pair had left for training months ago. It would be a long, intense, training period.

As the newly formed Team 20, Reita, Arata, and Shuroii waited to meet their sensei. Reita and Shuroii did most of the talking. They were the last ones waiting. All the other kids' sensei had been on time, but not theirs. Reita and Shuroii talked about what they had hoped their sensei would be like.

At last the door opened and in saunter a towering woman. She wore a cape with a hood, so they couldn't see her face. Thick locks of pale blue hair cascaded from under that hood.

She was very tall and walked with smooth grace. Her footsteps hardly made a din. She made her way to the three, lowering her hood before smiling. Shuroii gasped, though it wasn't because of her appearance. Sure, she had pale silver eyes with cat-like slits, had fangs which protruded from between her lips, and it was all a bit frightening. Still, that's not what made Shuroii want to faint.

She was Daichi's old sensei, the one who didn't disclose her name and wished to be known only by: Sensei.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: The Catalyst**

Shuroii felt light-headed. The room spun and she couldn't stand straight. She grabbed onto the desk, and tried to steady herself. _She_ was the worst possible person that could have walked through the door. Why had it been her, of all the Jonins in the village? _Daichi's sensei_? Shuroii felt like passing out at that very moment. She felt nauseous, a cold sweat breaking throughout her body. Her knees were shaking.

* * *

Arata stared at the eccentric woman that had walked in. She wore the standard Jonin uniform, with vest, underneath a dark-toned cape; the rest of her really threw Arata. Those bright, silver, cat-like eyes seemed to be able to cut him into tiny little pieces. He felt that this woman would be a very bad person to make an enemy of. He glanced over at Reita, who simply stared at her opened-mouthed, and then at Shuroii; her behavior alarmed him, yet he said nothing or gave any hint that he had noticed. He turned, and looked towards their sensei once again.

* * *

Reita couldn't believe his eyes. This woman looked _so_ freaky! Her hair was very long; grazing her waist. He wondered if it ever got in her way on missions. She gave them all an amused smirk, her gaze resting a bit longer on Arata, than either Shuroii or Reita. Reita didn't understand why, but Arata noticed. He stiffened and kept his gaze on her, an unreadable expression on his face; but that wasn't anything new. Reita looked toward Shuroii, about to make a joke, when he saw her body crumple and fall. He reached out, catching her before her body hit the ground.

"Shuroii!" he exclaimed.

"Well," the woman spoke for the first time, in a high-pitched, girly voice that was all too perky, and not at all what he expected. "It's been years since someone fainted at my appearance. Why don't we go outside and get to know each other, eh?"

She left the room without looking back to see if her students followed. Reita and Arata looked at each other, in confusion.

* * *

Reita had picked up Shuroii, cradling her as he and Arata followed their sensei. Arata never took his gaze off of her. He felt uneasy about the look she'd given him, especially the subtle glance down to his chest that he'd barely caught. This woman was lightning fast, she was like a cobra: one second calm and collected, just strolling casually, and yet in a blink of an eye she could strike. Arata would keep a close eye on her. He looked back at Reita, who was carrying Shuroii. He seemed a little nervous about doing so, blushing slightly. Arata almost grinned…almost.

She led them up to the roof of the Academy and had them sit in a circle, cross-legged. Arata thought this was a bit childish, yet this feeling of irritation left when he felt the presence of something right behind him, something big. It snorted and the hairs on the back of his neck stood upright. He wasn't sure if it was out of fear or the force of the inhale of the creature behind him. Arata kept his clam demeanor, but he was very scared.

"Careful," The woman said with a hint of amusement, "Kimino can smell fear. Like wolves, bears do not put up with weakness. The pack is only as strong as its weakest link. They get rid of weakness, if you know what I mean."

Arata got her hint, and he glared at her.

The giant bear walked around their little circle and settled down heavily behind the woman. She leaned against its side, running her fingers through its fur unconsciously. The bear was massive, at least twice the size of a regular bear. And bears were large creatures to begin with.

The bear had a slightly disfigured face; a very ugly scar ran over one of its eyes. It looked as if it couldn't see out of the eye, it was horrible. Its fur was marbled in brown and black, very unusual. Or so Arata thought. Its eyes, at least the good one, matched those of the woman. That observation sent a shiver down Arata's back. What could have possibly been done to make that happen? There was no way it could have been a coincidence.

He noticed the woman was staring at him. He was getting really sick of the way she looked at him, as if she expected him to explode at any moment. His aggravation was growing.

Beside him, he felt Shuroii stir. She was leaning against Reita's chest, sitting on his lap. When Reita had been instructed to sit down, he had looked around nervously, unsure of what to do. He'd settled on simply sitting down and holding Shuroii against him, seemingly embarrassed. If it had only been them three, Arata might have actually laughed and teased his brother; he wasn't saying a word around their sensei. He didn't trust the woman one bit.

Shuroii's eyes opened slowly. Her hand hovered over her face for a moment, trying to shield her eyes from the sudden sunlight. She didn't seem to discern where she was, which amused Arata all the more. He was never, ever, going to let those two forget this moment.

"R-Reita?" She said as she sat up, looking around, confused. Arata had expected her to scream or react upon noticing the bear, but she barely even blinked at the thing. This irritated Arata slightly, since he had been afraid. Since when was Shuroii the clam one?

It was slowly dawning on Shuroii that she was sitting on Reita's lap. Her cheeks flushed pink and then red. She slowly slid out off his embrace without a word. The two of them looked about awkwardly and it was very hard for Arata to keep a straight face, but he did. He couldn't wait to tell Teikaru.

The woman was smiling, but she didn't say anything. Arata noticed her sharp, razor-like teeth. He was starting to be freaked out a bit by her bear-like qualities.

"Are we ready to start our introductions, now that Sleeping Beauty has joined us?" she asked with a smile.

Shuroii looked down in embarrassment. Arata was liking this woman less and less.

/

Shuroii couldn't believe herself. She had passed out, just like that? It embarrassed her that she wasn't able to regain her composure as quickly as she would have liked. And then waking up in Reita's arms? It was beyond awkward and embarrassing; especially in front of Arata. His face gave nothing away, but the look in his eyes told Shuroii he'd never let the incident go. He'd more than likely tell Teikaru, and the two would gang up on her and Reita. She was not looking forward to that at all.

Sensei was apparently waiting for them to speak first. She had a patient expression upon her face; like sitting on the roof of the Academy all day was a great idea. She was obviously in no rush.

Reita cleared his throat, thinking the same as Shuroii. He opened his mouth to speak, but at that same moment Sensei sat bolt upright, an energetic look on her face. Reita blinked in surprise.

"I wish to be known only as Sensei to you. There will be no need for you to know my name. I've been a Jonin for a very long time now, and my last team went on to be very important, well-known shinobi. And that is all that I will share. Who's next?"

Shuroii looked away immediately, something she always did when she didn't want to be called on by the teacher in her classes. Reita still seemed stunned by her sudden change in mood and didn't say anything. Arata, to Shuroii's shock, was the first one to say anything.

"'Well-known Shinobi? If they're so well known, why haven't we ever heard of you?"

Sensei looked a little hurt by Arata's words and hateful tone. Shuroii couldn't blame her. She couldn't image being on the receiving end of Arata's vicious moments.

"I prefer to operate in the background, not the foreground. I like being unnoticed. But my last cubs, you all know pretty well. At least, I know one of you does." She laid her piercing gaze upon Shuroii, who had looked up when Arata spoke. She realized now how bad of a move that was. Immediately nervous, she looked down at her lap. She felt the boys looking at her, awaiting an explanation.

"She… She's Daichi's old sensei. I've met her before," Shuroii mumbled.

"Which is why, dear, I'm surprised you fainted when you met me again. I hope you won't every time we see each other, or this may not work out so well."

"Well that's just perfect. Prince Daichi's sensei," Arata said, rolling his eyes.

Sensei looked confused. "Prince Daichi?"

"Long story," Reita grumbled.

Sensei looked at them all in turn again with an blank expression.

"I sense animosity, old fights, jealousy, and a buried bitterness. I see that not everyone is as fond of my old cubs as I thought." She spoke softly.

Reita furrowed his brows, and asked, "Cubs?"

Sensei smiled at that, but didn't explain herself. Shuroii had heard from Daichi that she took a bit of time to get used to, and that she was a bit different; but acting like this? It was a bit too weird to get used to.

Arata was staring at Sensei; she was now trying hard to avoid looking at him. Shuroii wondered why Sensei kept looking at him so weird. A memory flicked from her subconscious, from a long time ago. _There was a struggle, a fight, a seal, and a scream of pain._ A shiver rushed down her spine at the memory. But how could Sensei know? Only four people knew of it; two of which Arata wasn't even aware of. Arata, her father, Daichi, and she, all knew. Daichi wouldn't have told Sensei…would he?

"Well cubs!" Sensei nearly screamed, she was exceptionally loud after the silence, "You will report to your first day as Team 20 tomorrow at my place. Shuroii knows the way." She gave Shuroii a wink, and then climbed onto Kimino's back. He got up in a flash of brown and black fur and bounded away along Konohagakure's rooftops.

Reita whistled low once she was gone. "What a piece of work…"

Arata nodded, deep in thought. He seemed very far away and Shuroii wasn't about to disturb him. She knew what happened to people who broke his train of thought, and it wasn't pretty.

Reita turned and smiled at Shuroii. "So, did you know she was going to be our sensei?"

Shuroii shook her head, "I was actually hoping she wouldn't be. I didn't want to have to live up to Daichi's name to someone who had taught him before…" She trailed off, looking down.

Reita nodded and didn't say anything. He knew when not to push, and Shuroii really liked that about him.

"We better get home. It sounds like we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow," Shuroii advised.

/

Arata paced his and Reita's living room. The looks he had received from Sensei continued to bother him. He wondered what she knew, and how. The marks on his back burned slightly, but Arata was pretty sure his mind was just playing tricks on him. He'd been to Tekiro every year to have the seal strengthened and he had asked him about the burning. A burning feeling was not one of the side effects of the seal, purely a figment of his imagination, Tekiro had told him. Arata was willing to believe that; to believe the alternative, after all, would be worse.

Other matters were also on his mind, particularly Reita. Reita had been acting strange lately. He suffered from mood swings, which were growing increasingly worse. Today he was able to hold himself together, to Arata's relief, but he was becoming more and more worried. Some times Reita would act like a different person. Walk differently, talk differently, and use phrases he wouldn't normally use. He acted like a completely different person. And that person was the complete opposite of Reita.

Aside from Arata, no one else had taken notice, since Reita normally acted like this after talking about their father, or other events from their childhood; something the brothers did when it was just the two of them. Arata noticed that there were certain triggers that influenced Reita's behavior, and he knew those triggers could present themselves on a mission someday, and that worried Arata. He knew that today he'd have to confront Reita about it, get it out in the open. Maybe he could work things out with Reita and everything would be fine from then on.

Arata took a deep breath and walked towards Reita's room, knocking on his closed door. "Hey, Rei? Can I come in?"

Arata counted to ten before opening the door. Reita was standing by his window, looking out, at the village. He was holding a kunai in his hands. Arata tensed immediately; his training kicking in subconsciously.

"Reita, what are you doing?" Arata asked softly.

Reita turned to face Arata, staring blankly at him. He stood straighter than usual, like he did when he had a change of mood. Arata swallowed, unsure of what to do.

"You never understood…what it was like for me…" Reita began, in a faraway tone, as if he were in the middle of a dream. It chilled Arata to the bone.

"How what was like for you, Reita? I've always tried to be there for you-"

"BUT YOU WEREN'T!" Reita screamed, furious all of a sudden. He foamed at the mouth, like a beast that had just been provoked to a fight. "YOU LEFT ME BY MYSELF WHEN IT REALLY MATTERED!"

Reita lunged toward Arata so quickly he barely had time to back up. The kunai came down in an arch over his chest, cutting deep. He felt the warm wetness of blood trickling down his stomach first, and then the pain. He was in shock. His brother had just tried to harm him, his mind not yet processing it all. Instinct took over then. Adrenaline pumped through his veins and his vision sharpened. He saw Reita following up with another attack, and grabbed his wrist in a block. Reita aimed to punch at his wound, but Arata spun the arm he had in his hand around behind Reita's back, making him turn around and punch air. He took the kunai from him and kicked Reita onto his bed.

Quick as lightning, Reita was back on his feet. Arata barely had time to even think and his hand flashed out towards Reita's face. He only realized later that it was the hand with the kunai in it, and he had just struck Reita's eye.

He didn't know why, but Arata immediately thought of Sensei's bear, before running out of the room, his brother's pained screams behind him.

/

Shuroii and her family were seated at the dinning room table, eating dinner. She informed her parents of who was on her team and who their sensei was. Her parents were very pleased to hear that Sensei was her sensei, that she had done a great job with Daichi. They were also happy to hear that Arata and Reita were on her team. They knew how well they got along with each other and that their friendship would translate into good teamwork.

Shuroii looked at Daichi's empty chair. She wondered what his thoughts would have been, if he were not off at ANBU training. She wondered whether he would approve of Sensei leading their team, or not. She'd have to remember to write a letter to him later, telling him the news.

Yuria was lost within her own thoughts and only mumbled her scripted "good job" and "that's nice" replies. She probably wasn't even listening. Dani seemed more excited about it all than Shuroii was herself.

They heard a knock on the door and all went still and quiet. Tekiro rose from his seat and went to the door without a word. This had become practice after so many years of his being in ANBU. He'd leave without a word, off to do his duties. After that night at the Sutaki Estate, he rarely came back to tell them where he was going.

Tonight seemed to be one of those rare occasions. He came back in and motioned for Shuroii to come out into the hallway. She wiped her mouth with her napkin and got out of her seat. She went out into the hallway, confused by her father's actions.

He closed the door behind him and walked her to the front door. There was no one there waiting for them, so Shuroii assumed the person who came to the door had gone on ahead. Shuroii was wondering what was going on.

"There seems to have been an accident. Arata and Reita are both in the hospital, and Arata's lost a lot of blood."

/

Shuroii stormed into the hospital like a derailed train. Everyone moved out of the way in a flurry, in fear of being overrun but the girl who was obviously oblivious to everything else around her but her goal. Her father paused behind her every so often to apologize for Shuroii; which caused him to fall behind, since there were many people to apologize to. Her father had already told her where the boys where, and so she went there without a word to anyone.

Reita's injury wasn't serious. A shallow cut on his lower left eyelid. No damage had been done to the eye, he simply needed a couple stitches. Arata was an entirely different story.

A deep gash ran from his left collarbone to the bottom of his ribs on the right side. His vital organs had been protected by his ribcage, but he still bleed out a lot from the magnitude of the wound and his moving around.

Her father had told her all this on their way to the hospital, but not who had done it to them. Her suspicion immediately went to someone in their clan who hated them both. Shuroii was furious; she would get whoever had done this to her friends, even it was the last thing she did.

Reita was sitting outside of the surgery room on one of the benches. His face was in his hands and he was very still. Shuroii immediately went up to him.

She kneeled down in front of him, gently putting her hands on top of his. He didn't move or give any sign he felt her.

Shuroii waited a few moments before asking, "Reita?"

In a flash, Reita's arms were around Shuroii. He immediately began to cry, sobs shook his body uncontrollably. His face pressed against her neck. She felt hot tears roll down her skin. Shuroii was in complete shock. She never thought he'd embrace her like this, but here they were; on the floor outside of a hospital room and Reita holding her so tightly it was almost painful. But she understood. He was probably worried for his brother, scared they had been attacked. He just needed a friend, and she would be there for him.

She stroked his hair, speaking to him in soothing tones. She wasn't entirely aware of what she was saying, but it seemed to relax Reita. He didn't hold her as tightly and didn't sob as much. She still felt his tears on her skin, rolling down farther. She didn't feel as awkward by their closeness as she had earlier that day. She just kept stroking his hair, trying to calm him down.

Someone put their hand on Shuroii's shoulder. She looked up to see Teikaru, a sullen look on his face. He knelt down next to her, moving his hand to Reita's shoulder.

Reita pulled away from Shuroii just enough to look at Teikaru. They stared at each other for awhile before Reita pressed his face against Shuroii's neck again. She blushed slightly, as they had an audience now; she felt a little awkward.

Teikaru sighed and looked at the doors to the surgery room. Shuroii wondered what he was thinking about.

He stood and sat down on the bench next to them. He looked down at them and motioned with his head that they should sit next to him.

Shuroii pulled Reita up with her as she sat next to Teikaru. He held her tight again, not letting go of her. He reminded her of a frightened child holding desperately to its mother. She wondered what he was remembering, if he was having flashbacks to when his father had murdered their mother.

Shuroii finally couldn't take it anymore. She _had_ to know who had done this to them. The words flew out of her mouth before she could stop.

"Who was the bastard you did this to you and Arata?"

Reita laughed, much to Shuroii's surprise. She pushed Reita away to look at his face.

Reita looked up at her, no humor displayed on his face. "The bastard was me."

/

Teikaru had already had a really terrible day. He was beyond exhausted and beyond annoyed. Mikota and he had been arguing all morning, over the tiniest of things. They had nothing in common and had opposite opinions on practically everything. Maika, the poor girl, had kept trying to break up their fights. She looked as tired as Teikaru felt at the end of the day. She was really pretty, Teikaru kept noticing. Throughout the years in the Academy he'd gotten the reputation of a flirt. He tried his moves on Maika, but she wasn't having any of it. Which in the end, it just made Teikaru more interested.

After about two hours of Teikaru and Mikota arguing and Maika trying in vain to stop them, their new sensei, Hideo-sensei, had called it quits for the day. He was a middle-aged man, tall, with a short salt-and-pepper beard and matching hair. He always had a toothpick in his mouth and chewed it to pieces when he was annoyed or nervous. He had a whole package in his back ninja bag.

They were to report at Training Ground 5 in the morning, fully rested and fed for their first team assignment. Teikaru already knew how the day was going to go; more or less the same as today.

He had just gotten home from a little grocery shopping and had put everything away when the ANBU lieutenant came to the door. All Teikaru wanted to do was have a nice relaxing night at home after the hell of a day he had, but of course it was made longer and worse.

Being on edge as he was, it probably wasn't a good thing he went to the hospital, but he did. Arata was his best friend and he was hurt. He wondered what had happened and needed to find out.

He had found Shuroii and Reita on the floor when he walked up. Shuroii's hair was down, a rare sight. For as long as he knew her, she'd always kept her hair in a ponytail, just in different places upon her head. Reita was holding onto her very tightly, which was also surprising to Teikaru. He knew they were close, but not _that_ close. What the hell did those two do while Arata and he weren't around?

He walked over to them and touched their shoulders, letting them know he was there. Shuroii looked scared, unsure of what to do. Reita's expression was unreadable, which surprised Teikaru. Being around the others for so long, he was able to read them pretty well, and knew that Reita had a hard time hiding his thoughts and feelings. And yet, here he was, cold and unreadable. It was unsettling to Teikaru.

He sat down on a bench and motioned for them to join him. Shuroii pulled them both onto the bench and Reita flashed Teikaru an irritated look, something completely out of character for him. He doubted Shuroii saw it, but it unsettled Teikaru even more.

Reita tightened his grip on Shuroii, almost possessively, and Teikaru was starting to get irritated. Shuroii didn't seem to notice anything out of the ordinary and still tried to comfort Reita, but Teikaru was on edge now. They were glaring at each other, Reita looking at Teikaru through strands of Shuroii's hair, which she had thrown over her shoulder. Teikaru was about to pull Shuroii away from him and demand to know what his problem was, when she spoke.

"Who was the bastard you did this to you and Arata?"

Reita laughed, a dry laugh without humor. Shuroii pushed him away and his glare faded to a blank look.

He looked into Shuroii's face and stated. "The bastard was me."

Teikaru moved so fast he barely saw himself. He pulled Shuroii away from Reita, not even sure why he did it, and pushed her behind him. Reita let out a snarl, glaring at Teikaru. He felt Shuroii about ready to protest, but Reita didn't give her the chance. Reita launched himself at Teikaru, grabbing him around the neck. They fell on the ground and rolled down the hallway. Teikaru heard Shuroii screaming, Reita yelling, and a rushing sound right next to his ears. He could barely think anymore, with his oxygen being cut off by Reita's grip. His vision started to fade to black. He knew he had to move fast, or he'd go under.

He brought his knee up hard into Reita's stomach. Reita's grip on Teikaru's neck loosened as he fell off of him. Teikaru moved away from him, gasping for breath. Shuroii started to move closer to them.

"Don't come closer, Shuroii!" Teikaru yelled at her.

"Don't tell her what to do!" Reita roared and lunged towards Teikaru again.

This time Teikaru was prepared. He flicked his wrist up, palm facing out towards Reita. A second later, a wall of ice appeared and Reita slammed head first into it. He heard Shuroii gasp, but didn't look over at her. This was the first time he used his Kekkei Genkai in front of them; he'd been practicing, by himself, from the scrolls he had brought with him from Kirigakure.

He flicked his wrist down, palm facing the ground, and the ice shattered. Reita was a little flustered from the hit, but he got back up. He looked a little confused now, but when Teikaru moved between him and Shuroii, Reita snarled again. He ran for Teikaru again, but Teikaru grabbed him. He spun around, using Reita's momentum against him and changed his direction. Unfortunately, there was a flaw in Teikaru's plan. Reita had grabbed onto him and was pulled along with him. They hit a window with such force that it shatter into a million pieces. They went freefalling into the night, with Shuroii's screams the only thing Teikaru could hear as the cold hard ground came up very fast.

/

Arata's chest stung. That's the first conscience thought he had. The next was that many people were leaving the room. There was a crashing sound and a scream. The scream sounded familiar, but his brain was very fuzzy. He felt the tiny prickle of a needle in his arm, an IV. His vision was a little blurry and the room was spinning, but something was demanding he pull himself together. A memory, someone needing him, danger, and that scream. They all seemed to be linked, but Arata couldn't think straight. He knew he had all the pieces, but something was preventing him from putting it all together.

The next time the person screamed, he knew to whom the voice belonged. He sobered up, almost instantly; everything pieced together into chilling clarity in a blink of an eye.

It was a desperate cry for help, a single word, from someone he knew very well.

It was Shuroii, and she was yelling his name.

/

Shuroii was confused and scared. She wasn't even completely sure of what she just saw, everything happened so quickly. All she knew was that two of her best friends were fighting, and they had just crashed through a window. People in white hospital uniforms were surrounding her, trying to pull her away from the scene, but she resisted. She finally broke free and ran back towards the window.

She didn't know why she said it; it was just the first thing that came to mind. She had meant to say the other's names, yet his came out instead.

"ARATA!" Shuroii screamed as loud as she possibly could. She didn't know what good it would do, yet she felt like she was living a nightmare. Everything was hazy and not making any sense at all. She felt the room spin as her senses overwhelmed her.

Then there was a steadying hand, gripping her upper arm. She looked up in surprise to see Arata looking down at her. She was even more surprised when worry was clearly displayed on his face. He never broke out of his stone-faced expression. Never.

He sat her down on a bench as nurses came rushing at them and with one look to the window, jumped out after the others.

/

This was not Teikaru's day. At _all_. First Mikota, now Reita. He never realized how strong Reita actually was until he fought him now. He tried to keep his rage from spilling over into his attacks. He wasn't being serious, not putting his all into his attacks, but if this kept up he'd be left with no choice. Reita kept pressing him, and things weren't looking good.

He heard Shuroii scream again, very loudly, yet he couldn't make out what she said over Reita's snarling against his earlobe.

They had fallen two stories; thankfully, there was a tree right outside the window. He was able to grab a hold of a branch before he hit the ground, and so did Reita. He tried not to feel annoyed by it; after all, they were friends. Still, it would have been a whole lot easier for Teikaru if Reita had, conveniently, broken his leg or two from the fall. Then he wouldn't have to worry about being a second away from death.

He heard a thud and a grunt back towards the window, but didn't take his eyes off of Reita, who was punching wildly, trying to knock Teikaru off balance. Every time Teikaru couldn't get out of the way, he'd put up a small ice sheet to take the blow. Reita's hands were bloody from the many impacts, yet he didn't give up. Teikaru was getting more and more worried by his friend's behavior.

A smear of black flashed in between Teikaru and Reita. Reita went rolling around on the ground with a newcomer, and Teikaru was relieved. He took a breath, happy for the sudden break, yet become fully focused once again. He slowly realized that the newcomer was Arata himself.

Teikaru ran in the direction the two were rolling.

/

Arata was furious.

Beyond furious.

He'd been put in the hospital by his own brother, he could only guess that Reita was also responsible for Shuroii's being on the verge of a panic attack, and now he found him, fighting his best friend. And from the shape Teikaru was in, things weren't going well for him before he tackled Reita to the ground.

He couldn't understand why Reita was doing all of this, but his back burned. The seal felt like it was on fire. The thought of Reita possibly being possessed never left his mind the second he saw him standing at his window with a kunai. Arata wondered how it could be possible, but it was the only thing that made any sense. Arata was almost as scared for his brother as he was infuriated with him.

Reita growled and tried to hit Arata, but they went tumbling over each other down a hill. He heard Teikaru call their names, but they tumbled farther and farther away.

Once Arata thought they were far enough away, he kicked Reita off of him and flung him into a nearby tree. Reita hit his head against the tree bark with a loud crack and he fell to the ground, unconscious.

Arata stood up, panting. He walked over to his brother and knelt down beside him. He first checked to make sure he was still breathing, he was. He hadn't meant to hit Reita that hard. He just wanted to get him off and possibly knock him out. But the way he fell…it worried Arata.

Teikaru came running up and stopped, panting. He was covered in dirt and his clothes were ripped in many places. He was bleeding from small cuts on his hands and arms. Arata hadn't known his brother was capable of besting Teikaru that way. He always assumed Reita wasn't that strong, but it seemed he was wrong. The realization was chilling. When did he get so strong?

"What the HELL was that about? What's wrong with him?" Teikaru managed to pant out.

Arata remained silent. He wasn't sure how to answer that question.

His wound had re-opened. He felt the warm wetness dripping down his stomach, pooling in his lap. Everything went fuzzy again and Arata slumped against the ground, as his vision faded to blackness.

/


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: A Test of Friendship**

Two weeks had passed since the group of friends had last seen each other. Teikaru hadn't visited either Arata or Reita, while the two were still in the hospital. He would give Shuroii a rushed excused every time she asked him to accompany her to the hospital, before simply walking off. Reita couldn't be visited by anyone; he was under constant supervision in the psychiatric ward of the hospital. Shuroii's father had been able to visit him. She didn't know how he had managed to do so, but she suspected he had to have called in a few favors. He never told her why he had gone or what had been discussed.

Arata was an entirely different situation. He was well enough to be discharged from the hospital within the first week, yet every time Shuroii would meet him on the street he'd turn his back on her. Whenever she'd show up at his home, he would either entirely ignore Shuroii or make his escape through the back window. Shuroii was frustrated, but moreover hurt that she couldn't see her friends, or talk to them for more than five seconds. She had no idea how to change it.

Ignored by Arata yet again, she turned away from his house, crying silently.

/

Arata knew what he was doing to Shuroii was hurting her, and hurting her badly. He knew that being left alone, without her friends, was always something she'd been afraid of. But Arata needed space. He needed to figure things out for himself, before he could face the others. Twice a day, Arata was updated on Reita's condition. He knew now what had happened.

As Arata understood it, the trauma of their childhood had left Reita with deep mental scars. Over time, and because of the conflict and turmoil within his own mind, Reita had developed a split personality. Moreover, Reita couldn't remember anything about that night. Arata wasn't quite sure how he felt about that.

Reita was to be released today. Arata was supposed to be there to take him home. It would be the first time in two weeks that he would see his brother. The first time since he had kicked him into a tree and given him a concussion. Arata still wasn't sure what he was going to say to his brother.

Arata had been told that Reita's condition wouldn't impact his shinobi career. He was still fit to serve as long as he took his medication. Apparently, this sort of thing wasn't uncommon.

Once he heard Shuroii leave her post at his front door, Arata got ready to leave. He'd have to find a way to make everything up to Shuroii. He was very well aware it would take more than a simple apology to fix the damage he'd done. He wasn't that stupid.

Arata pulled his hood over his head, before sneaking out through the window of his room. He wasn't entirely sure as to whether or not Shuroii was still outside his door, and he didn't want to explain the situation at the moment. He still didn't know how to explain everything to Reita. Truthfully, Arata wasn't even sure he wanted to see his brother.

In the moment he was attacked by Reita, all Arata could see was their father. Arata didn't want to admit it, nor did he like doing so, but he was afraid. He thought that with his father's imprisonment, he had escaped the abuse. It seemed that wasn't going to happen; at least, not right now.

He purposefully took side streets, avoiding both people and daylight. It was no secret that Arata wasn't much of a people person, preferring to be left alone. If he hadn't made friends with Shuroii and Teikaru at a young age, he doubted he'd have friends at all. Arata wouldn't have minded.

As he walked to the hospital a million thoughts flowed through his mind. He wasn't sure what he was going to say to his brother, but he knew there was no more avoiding confrontation, or putting it off. He was out of excuses, and out of time.

The hospital drew near. A nurse and Reita were waiting for him outside the main entry. Arata took a deep breath, stepping towards the two of them.

/

_The next morning_

Shuroii walked up the path to Sensei's house, alone. She hadn't bothered to pick up either Reita or Arata, as the plan had been two weeks ago. She didn't care if they would find the way or not. She didn't care about the consequences. Sensei could do anything to her; it would be less painful than what pain her only friends had put her through the past fortnight.

She saw Sensei sitting, with her bear Kimino, outside her house. It was a simple, small yet cozy, log cabin. It consisted of one room, since only she cooked in it. She and her husband, like the rest of the Kuma Clan, basically lived in the forest. The cabin was surrounded, on all sides, by a dense forest; whose canopy let through not a single ray of light. Sensei's cabin was in the middle of a small clearing, and was the only one around the immediate area. Adjacent to the cabin, the area permitted space for a small garden, as well as a small patch of grass. A water well had been built on the opposite side, close to the forest line.

She remembered the way in which Daichi had described this place the first night he'd came home from training. He had described it impeccably.

Shuroii tried to swallow her sudden irritation.

She walked up to Sensei and took a seat before her. Sensei had her eyes closed. She seemed to be sleeping, but Shuroii knew better. Her breathing was not slow and steady as that of a slumbering human. Shuroii waited for Sensei to speak.

"Why are you alone, Shuroii?" Sensei asked.

She took a moment to respond, choosing her words carefully. She knew better than to use sarcasm with her, "Because, Sensei … It's a bit tense with us now. Arata's been avoiding me; Reita's been in the hospital… I just didn't feel like helping them to get here."

Even now, her decision to not escort the two brothers sounded selfish.

But Sensei didn't say anything about it. Instead, her reply surprised Shuroii, "It's understandable to feel neglected and spiteful. The situation is a bit complex and Arata's behavior has been most uncalled for. This is not how fellow cubs should treat each other."

Shuroii was put off by Sensei's complete understanding. She didn't know how to respond.

Heavy steps sounded behind her. She knew it had to be more of the bears that lived in the forest. But other lighter footsteps were with them.

"Arata…Reita…It's so nice of you two to join us." Sensei greeted them pleasantly, with her eyes still closed.

Shuroii kept her eyes on her lap as the two boys sat down, one on either side of her. She didn't look up at either of them, nor did she greet them. She kept her eyes down and to the ground. The air around them tensed. They didn't greet each other or say a word. None of them made a sound.

"I must confess, I am severely disappointed with you three." Sensei spoke in a lazy voice, almost slurring her words. She opened her eyes slowly and glared at them, each, in turn. "I thought you three had more compassion for each other. Your sensei at the Academy spoke highly of your tight bond. What I see is a self-obsessed narcissist," she looked at Arata, "a boy who's too emotionally unstable to perform his duties," she glared at Reita, "and a girl, who by some _miracle_, managed to graduate the Academy with next-to-no skills as a shinobi, and who will _never _live up to her family name," she looked towards Shuroii with pity, "…And here I thought I'd be getting _cubs_, not _spoiled children_."

Arata clenched his fists, as Shuroii saw from her peripheral vision. Reita sat still, without reaction, while Shuroii simply tried not to cry. Sensei's words had cut deep, as it was something she'd always felt. Hearing it from someone else…she could hardly bear it.

Sensei stood up. "I'm sending you all back to the Academy. I don't want you as my students. In fact, I doubt any sensei would. You might as well all drop out of the program before you embarrass the village."

Sensei turned on her heel, but Arata stood his ground, stopping the woman in her tracks.

"You can't do that." His voice dripped with hatred, defiance. This wasn't anything new to Shuroii, but she sensed something different in him. He seemed focused, determined. Shuroii couldn't help herself; she looked up at him in surprise before she could stop her movements. His facial expression was one she never saw before. He looked at Sensei with narrowed eyes, chin elevated defiantly. He dared her to challenge him, and he would meet her challenge.

Sensei smiled coldly at his display. "You think yourself worthy of being called a shinobi?"

Arata kept a steady gaze, without moving or speaking. Reita stood, with an air much like Arata's. His face was devoid of emotion, merely staring at Sensei, completely indiscernible. Shuroii wasn't sure what to make of the two, and kept looking between one and the other.

What were they doing? Didn't they understand what was happening? Everything was over. They were done, nothing. Everything inside Shuroii had shattered like a glass window struck by stone; the fallen shards turning to dust as they hit the ground. She was numb, unsure of herself. Her confidence, which had taken years to build, was gone. She barely remembered how to turn her head to look at the boys she thought were her friends.

She had been fragile before today; cracks had emerged along her glass façade. Sensei's words had been the stone that had finally broken her. The boys now thought they could fight against their fate? Shuroii was done fighting. She knew years ago she should have given up. Hearing it from someone else had affirmed what she always knew. And now she just wanted to go home.

"Very well, I shall give you all a chance to prove yourself." Sensei's words seemed far away and distorted, as if she were saying them behind a small waterfall.

_No. _The word couldn't come out of Shuroii's concrete lips.

"One final test,"

_Please, no_. She just wanted to bundle up into a ball and cry.

"If you pass,"

_Just let me go home_.

"You will become cubs,"

_I don't want to do this anymore_.

"And also become my new Genin students."

Sensei furrowed her cape, throwing it across them three. Shuroii felt herself fall forward, into darkness.

Shuroii was conscience of two things: One, it was very, _very,_ cold where she was. Two, she was lying on stone, and then she heard something dripping.

She sat up slowly, trying to open her eyes. She seemed to be unable to, for some reason. She reached up, grazing her face. She gasped, her eyes were open, but it was simply too dark to see anything.

Shuroii tried not to panic. She had a light in her supplies. She reached into her back ninja bag and pulled out her flashlight. She slid the switch forward and a welcoming glow came from it. It lit up her surroundings to reveal a small stone cavern, with stalactites all around her, dripping a combination of water and calcite to form the stalagmites below. She seemed to be in a smaller cubby, with a small path leading into darkness. Shuroii stood up slowly, pointing her light forward, looking for a way out.

Shuroii had no interest in whatever test Sensei was putting them through. The boys could take it seriously if they wished. She, on the other hand, just wanted to leave and go home. She'd take Sensei's advice and give up her pointless goal.

Shuroii moved forward and stepped into a much larger cavern. There was a river moving swiftly through the middle. The stalagmites and stalactites were all formed together in this part of the cavern, giving the feel of a labyrinth made of prison bars. It was obvious that not many people went through here, since it was hard to find a place to fit through.

She had no plan of finding a means of escape. She really didn't know if she was going the right way or if she was just moving deeper into the maze. All she knew was that instinct was driving her, to keep her moving.

Because Shuroii had no more thoughts; on the inside, she had completly, and thoroughly, given up.

/

Arata hit the solid rock with his fists. Again. Again. More blood splattered onto the stone, more pain erupted from his knuckles; increasingly tired, and no closer to his goal.

The outside was _right there_, he could see the light, hear the birds, smell the grass, yet he was still caged in.

He sat down heavily, exhausted. He was panting, sweating from vain exertion. He took a moment to calm his breathing before looking around his surroundings again.

To his right was the way out. It was closed off by columns of stone, unbreakable and strong. He could see a small overhang blocking off some of the light that was seeping in from the outside. To his left, there were more bars, with nothing but endless darkness on the other side. He heard strange echoes every once in a while. The columns of stone didn't seem as thick as the ones blocking him off from the world, but he had no desire to go that way. Why risk losing the way out for the sake of stumbling into darkness?

For the millionth time, he wondered how Sensei had gotten him there. There were no obvious signs of entry or easy access. The only other objects he could discern within the cell were a small pool of liquid, and a note. He read the note for the thousandth time, carefully reading every individual word lettered in fancy handwriting.

_So you wouldn't lose what matters most to you, Narcissus._

/

Reita had woken up by himself, cold and scared. He'd been going around the cavern with a flashlight in his mouth and kunai in his hand. He'd found a way to break down the thick stone using the kunai and his chakra. It was much easier to clear a path then trying to figure a way around.

All Reita could think about was Shuroii and Arata. He wanted to say so many things to Shuroii, to explain himself. He had planned out what he would say to her in his head, but forgot everything when he saw her. When Sensei had said what she had to Shuroii, all he wanted to do was punch her jaw.

Shuroii wasn't useless. She was an amazing Shinobi; and she was the glue that held them all together. He knew that he could make things right, make everything go back to normal, if _only_ he could talk to her first.

He knew he had to find her first. Arata could take care of himself, and maybe the words would come back to him while they were alone. He pressed on, cutting down the stone that was in his way, making his way towards the sound of rushing water.

/

By this time, Shuroii was dragging her feet.

She had no motivation to continue. She didn't want to go on. She took frequent breaks to sit and rest. Her limbs felt like that had been replaced with cement, and she had to drag them along with her. It was tiresome, dragging the concrete with her, trying to fit through the tiny spaces in the columns.

She couldn't take the darkness anymore. She couldn't take the cold. She couldn't take the smell. She didn't even _want_ this test. All she could do was cry silently.

When she came to the edge of the river, she slumped down. She pointed the flashlight at the river. It wasn't very wide, maybe four to five feet across. She watched as rock particles moved by swiftly. The current seemed to be fast and strong, heading down towards a tiny chamber of jagged rock formations. She couldn't see where the water came from.

She had two options: go along the river, or try and cross it.

She wasn't fond of either option.

So she sat there, growing increasingly colder from the stone. Shuroii sat there, emotionless, for only God knows how long.

She heard many crashes, the first came from far away, but subsequent ones grew closer. She looked in the direction of the sounds. Normally, she would have been frightened into movement, but she didn't care. She looked back to the river.

What did she have to live for anyways? She wouldn't be a Shinobi after this day. She'd bring shame to her family. Her parents wouldn't be able to look at her in the same way. Yuria would never let it go. Dani would be confused. And Daichi…she could already see the disapproval and pity in his eyes.

Maybe life would still have been worth living, if she still had her friends. She saw their faces clearly now, looking at her. She sobbed at the good memories she had of them, but that time was over. They wanted nothing to do with her.

She stood up then and walked to the very edge, looking down. She would do it, do it now before she lost her nerve. There would be no going back.

Just as the loudest crash yet rang through the cavern, she jumped off the edge and enjoyed a moment of pure glee at her sudden weightlessness.

But the moment was shattered by a wrenching, painful scream. And it was familiar to her.

"SHUROII!" Reita screamed.

/

Reita's body moved without hesitation. The moment he saw her go under, he dove in.

The water carried him faster than he would have expected. He broke the surface, panicked but focused on his goal. He saw her head bobbing above the surface, further ahead. He propelled himself forward, shortening the distance between them quickly.

She was face down in the water, motionless. Reita's heart squeezed painfully at the sight. There was no way she could have drowned already!

He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her towards him, her face now above the waterline. He couldn't tell if she was breathing or not, only that they were drawing closer to the rock formations at an alarming pace, and that he could not touch the bottom.

He had no plan as to how he would get the two of them out of the water. He had lost his kunai to the current, he had no control, and he couldn't think properly. Things were moving way too fast for him.

His heart pounded against his chest. He held Shuroii tighter, afraid he'd lose her to the current as well. He was having trouble staying afloat. He was ready to give up.

He would die down here, in a cave, drowned by a river, because he had failed.

He had failed to save Shuroii, and now they would both die, because of it.

But then he saw something that gave him a glimmer of hope. There was something sticking out over the river up ahead, coming up fast. He couldn't tell if it was sturdy, but it was the only plan he had. As it came up, he reached up and grabbed a hold of it.

Pain shot from his shoulder. He thought his arm was being ripped off. He nearly lost his grip from the pain, but held on. Shuroii's weight and the current were threatening to rip Reita's arm right out of its socket. He had to move quickly if they were to get out of the river alive.

He was close enough to the shore that if Shuroii had been conscience, she could have easily climbed up from there. But Reita had to find some way of pulling them onto shore. It seemed impossible; the current was moving far too fast, he was in too much pain, and he was not getting any help from Shuroii.

He had only a few more seconds now. Any longer, and he'd let go. He pulled on Shuroii with all his strength, using everything he had in him. He would gladly die in her place, if it meant she was safe, whatever it took. He, somehow, managed to throw her up onto shore, using chakra to enhance his strength; far enough that only her lower leg and feet were in the water.

She didn't fall back into the water. He was relieved.

And then he lost his grip, and was pulled away from her, being carried swiftly to his death.

/

Shuroii wasn't sure how, but she woke up on the opposite bank, wet and colder than ever.

She had blacked out the moment she hit the water, and couldn't remember much of anything. All she remembered was that she had been standing on the edge of one bank, dry and cold, and now she was lying on the opposite bank, wet and cold. She sat up and looked around.

Then she heard the thrashing.

She looked down to see Reita in the water, being pulled away by the current.

He had jumped in to save her, and now he was going to die in her place.

"Shuroii! Help me!" he cried out.

She shot up like a bullet, running down the bank of the river. The cement seemed to shed off of her as she ran. She didn't know how she caught up with Reita so fast, but she gained on him quickly.

He was trying to catch a hold of the side of the river, but with no success. There was nothing to hold onto. Reita looked up at her then, scared, like a trapped animal.

She ran further ahead, knowing this would be the only way she'd have time to pull him out. She got on her knees and stretched her hand out. "Grab my hand!" she screamed as loud as she could.

Reita grabbed her wrist, and she was nearly pulled in. She had to emulate chakra to her feet to keep herself latched onto the bank. She heard her shoulder pop, but she was not letting go. She pulled with all her might, nearly falling backwards.

Reita kicked himself out of the water, flattening on the bank next to her, breathing hard. He was sobbing, but she couldn't discern if he was crying, since he was completely wet. Shuroii, herself, was shaking, but whether it was from fear or the cold, she wasn't sure.

She had almost caused Reita's death. He had gone in to save her. He still cared.

She had been wrong, Reita still cared about her.

She started crying and sobbing. She hugged her Reita tightly, still holding him from pulling him out of the water, unable to control herself. How could she have been so wrong? And then she almost caused his death...

Reita sat up and pulled her with him, holding her. He tried to calm her, saying they were okay and they were safe now, that everything was alright, but it just made her feel worse. She held onto him tightly; to make sure she wasn't dreaming, and she really had saved him. To make sure he really was okay. He felt real, wet, but real. She felt his heartbeat pounding against his chest.

Just two weeks ago, their places had been switched. But now, a lot of things had changed. Not just who was comforting who.

She pulled away after a while. She was still shaking, but no longer crying. He was shaking too, his teeth chattering. He gave her a nervous smile and stood up. He helped her to get to her feet. They stood there awkwardly for a moment.

"C'mon," he said at long last, "let's find a way out of here, Shuroii."

"There is no way out. We'll be stuck here forever…" she spoke back, in a much more quiet tone than she normally used.

"Look that way, Shuroii." He pointed over her shoulder and to her left.

Light. Far off into the distance and small, but it was light.

They both started running toward it.

/

Arata had given up a long time ago. He was sure he'd die in this prison, just like his father. He starred angrily up at the ceiling, hating himself for making the comparison. He was not his father, and he didn't deserve to be imprisoned like him. His father deserved to rot where he was, Arata had done nothing.

He hadn't looked at his reflection since the first time he found the note. He would not give Sensei the satisfaction of getting to him through her little mind game. He was doing pretty well so far, and he intended to keep it that way.

He heard the echo of foot steps coming his way. He instantly sat up and looked out through the bars to the dark side. It had to be Reita and Shuroii.

He realized then he hadn't ever thought of them at all. All he had thought about was himself. Maybe…Sensei had been right; maybe all he thought about really _was_ himself. Then he wanted to kick himself for ever thinking that she was right. She didn't know anything about him.

"Look, there's light coming from here." said a voice he recognized as belonging to Reita.

Reita and Shuroii both stopped in front of his cell. They were both dripping wet. Arata would have found this scene funny if it were under different circumstances.

What disturbed him most was the way Shuroii was looking at him. She didn't glare at him like he expected, didn't smile at him like she usually did, she didn't show any emotion at all. And at once he understood something.

She wanted to leave him there, for what he had done to her.

While he could hardly blame her, he was _not_ staying down there to die. And she was going to have to get over it.

Reita, not noticing Shuroii's look, looked completely confused, as usual. "How the hell did you ever manage to get in there?"

"I woke up in here. Now get me out of here!" he yelled.

"No."

The word, muttered by Shuroii, shocked Reita, and stunned Arata, not that he showed any sign he heard her. Was she really _that_ mad at him?

"You deserve to be where you are. Let's go, Reita."

"But…Shuroii, we can't just leave him here!"

"Watch me," she turned her back on them both, and started walking.

Reita went after her and grabbed her arm. His other arm was dangling, useless. By the look of it, Arata guessed it had been dislocated. He wondered what had happened to them.

"Shuroii, please," he begged.

Shuroii didn't respond.

"Shuroii…he's my brother. Please, help me help him."

Shuroii stood there for a moment, and then sighed. She turned to look at Reita, and then glared at Arata. "This isn't for you. Just remember that."

"… I need one of your kunais. I had only brought one, and I lost it in the river." Reita said.

Shuroii handed him one. Arata watched as Reita imbedded the kunai at the top of the columns of stone. He tapped his fist against the kunai like it was a hammer to a nail. Cracks laced down the stone and it shattered like it was simple glass.

Arata hated himself for not thinking of that.

Arata knew the bars on the other side were much too thick for that trick to work, so he shimmied out into the darkened hallway. He looked down in the direction they had been heading towards. They were close to a light source, and he could feel a breeze.

Without a word, they all started heading in that direction.

/

Sensei watched as they each came out of the cavern's entrance. It had pained her to hit them all where she knew it would hurt them the most, but it had to be done. Her test was based on how they would react. Seeing that they came out together, as one, like they failed to do this morning, was relieving. She took notice that Reita and Shuroii were soaking wet, and a stab of agony shot through her chest. They had fallen into the river, and they had almost died. That was not what she had wanted. She watched as they approached, acting more like a unit than individuals. This was progress.

/

Arata hated Sensei even more when he saw her just standing there. He clenched her note tightly within his fist. All he wanted to do was stuff it down her throat and watch her choke on it.

* * *

Shuroii wasn't looking at Sensei. She had gotten some of her spark back while in the cavern, but lost it as soon as they emerged. It was over, even if they passed. She hadn't told the others this, but this was the end.

* * *

Reita was worried about Shuroii. He had never stopped wondering why she had jumped since he saw her go under. He would talk to her, later. But he _would_ talk to her.

* * *

Shuroii looked up at Sensei, meeting her straight in the eye.

Sensei smiled apologetically towards them. "I suppose…simply saying 'I'm sorry' won't cut it, will it?"

Shuroii was confused by her question. It seemed the other boys did too, since neither responded.

Sensei sighed, moving on, "I needed to make sure you wouldn't abandon each other, no matter what circumstances you were placed under. Coming out together, alive, you have passed my test. And…I must apologize for what I said before you entered the cavern. Obviously, if it were true, you wouldn't have succeeded in-"

She was cut off, because Shuroii had stepped forward and had punched her in the face. She numbly did it, almost like a reflex. Anger filled her, for her own _sensei_ to have put her down in such a way she nearly killed herself and Reita. Shuroii had been told this woman was of high morals and a great person, but all she saw was the real sorry excuse to Shinobi.

She would have kept hitting her if Reita hadn't pulled her back. He was only capable of restraining her with his one good arm, but it was an arm that was as strong as steel. She didn't bother fighting.

"Well…I guess I deserved that." Sensei said after a time.

"You deserve more," spoke Arata, "but I guess that will have to do for now."

Sensei smiled at Arata, like he had made a funny joke. She looked up at the sky.

"We are now Team 20. Congratulations, Reita, Arata, and Shuroii. You are all officially Genin. Meet outside the Hokage's mansion at 7 o'clock for our first mission tomorrow. And maybe, over time, we will heal the bonds between us, together."

*/*

Erza watched as another dummy was reduced to nothing by the edge of her sword. She had been preparing all her life for this, this opportunity. She would bring vengeance to her clan. She would bring _glory_ to her clan and restore it to its former state.

She knew for a fact that _that man_ was alive and well in Konoha, and she was going to do exactly what her clan was accused of those five long years ago.

She was going to kill Teikaru Sakurana.

As she reduced yet another dummy to splinters, a man watched her from the shadows, watching his good work come to bare fruit. His red snake-like eyes stared, his forked tongue tasting the air.

The upcoming Chunnin Exams were going to be interesting indeed.


End file.
